Binance CEO Richard Teng Urges Nigerian Government to Free Tigran Gambaryan

Binance Holdings Ltd. CEO Richard Teng has criticized the Nigerian government for unjustly imprisoning Tigran Gambaryan for over 70 days as a scapegoat. Teng, in a blog post, has demanded the immediate release of Gambaryan, asserting his innocence.

Teng emphasized that detaining mid-level employees of a company after inviting them for collaborative policy meetings sets a dangerous precedent for all companies globally.

The Nigerian government’s actions seem to mirror those of the United States government, which fined Binance over $4 billion and sentenced its former CEO, Changpeng Zhao, to four months in prison. However, reports suggesting that the Nigerian government has demanded $10 billion as a fine from Binance have been largely dismissed by experts.

The Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have maintained silence on the matter. Additionally, the NFIU’s alleged use of unofficial channels to communicate with Binance resulted in Gambaryan’s detention earlier this year.

However, Teng clarified that Gambaryan had traveled to Nigeria not as a decision-maker or negotiator, but as an expert in financial crime and capacity building for policy discussions.

Teng expressed his dedication to securing Gambaryan’s release and shared the complete details of the situation in a public statement.

The Nigerian government attributes the increasing demand for cryptocurrency assets to the declining value of the national currency. Currently, the Nigerian Naira trades at approximately 1,383 against the US dollar.

As a regulatory measure, the Nigerian SEC has proposed various changes, including a complete ban on person-to-person transactions involving the Naira.

Tags: Binance